The Living Terror
by Damaramu
Summary: The Teen Titans face a new enemy. These five warriors call themselves The Living Terror...and they are all undead beings. Can the Titans handle an enemy from beyond the grave? (Chapter 3 added! I would appreciate reviews)
1. Chapter 1

The Living Terror  
  
By Johannes "Damaramu" Cats  
  
Before we begin, the Teen Titans are copyright to DC Comics/Marv Wolfman/Peter David and the Death Knight, Dreadlord, Lich, Crypt Lord, Dark Ranger and Pit Lord are all copyright to Blizzard Entertainment.  
  
Chapter 1: Day of the Living Dead  
  
Many miles away from Titans Tower lies an abandoned prison. Some claim it's haunted. Some claim nobody ever goes there and lives to tell the tale. Others claim otherworldly figures live there. One way or another, there is life in this prison. Inside the depths of the prison, five mysterious figures talk amongst themselves.  
  
"The Teen Titans have been defeating every villain in this little city. They have been doing it quite easily, as well."...So spoke the man with the large trenchcoat and eyepatch.  
  
"This is true. Every opposition is but a joke compared to their teamwork and might. It's about time we change all this."...So spoke the undead man with the fearsome armor, cape and blade.  
  
"We have been lying dormant here for too long. I can hardly wait to bring a deep cold to this land."...So spoke the skeleton draped in wizard-like garments.  
  
"Our will shall be done. The Teen Titans...and everyone else shall feel our presence"...So spoke the winged, vampiric demon with demonic armor.  
  
"Our might combined will be the end of the Teen Titans!!"...So spoke the giant, bug-like creature.  
  
"Yes...we have all said our part. Now let us give the Titans....competition." after the man with the trenchcoat spoke, the five figures began plotting their devious strategy.  
  
The doors at the prison opened automatically, as the five figures entered their War Room.  
  
"What's our plan?" spoke the skeleton.  
  
"We only want their undivided attention. The three of you strike at downtown. Me and him will stay here." At that moment, the skeleton, undead man and the bug-like creature left the prison.  
  
Meanwhile, at Titans Tower, Beast Boy was duking it out with Cyborg in a fighting game on their gamestation.  
  
"There's no way you can touch this!" said Beast Boy as his fighter was pummeling Cyborg's.  
  
"Grrr...I'll teach you a lesson, you little green punk!" said Cyborg. At that moment, Cyborg's fighter slammed Beast Boy's fighter down. Thus causing Beast Boy's fighter to be KO'ed.  
  
"Nooo! I almost had you, too!!" screeched Beast Boy.  
  
"Where's your "untouchable skill" now, huh?" said Cyborg, flaunting his victory. Raven entered the room when Beast Boy and Cyborg were roughhousing over the incident.  
  
"Hey! Why don't you two take it outside? I am becoming VERY tired of your constant bickering over something as feeble as a video game" proclaimed Raven.  
  
Cyborg and Beast Boy looked at one another and then back at Raven. "Why don't YOU go meditate?" said Beast Boy.  
  
Raven became more agitated and refrained from yelling Beast Boy out. Raven then took a seat and began to read one of her many books. Robin and Starfire suddenly barge into the living room as if they were in a hurry.  
  
"Titans, Trouble! We have some bad activity happening downtown!" yelled Robin.  
  
"But, who are these enemies that we must face?" said Starfire. Raven powered on a monitor and began getting information on the current situation.  
  
"...information unknown. Hmm... looks like we'll have to go down there and find out what it is," said Raven.  
  
"It may just be a minor threat. Cyborg, Raven, Beast Boy, go down there and find out the problem. If you need help, let us know!" said Robin. Raven, Cyborg and Beast Boy then fled Titans Tower and proceeded to go to downtown.  
  
At downtown, the three warriors were making crowds flee in panic. Also, the three warriors were destroying anything they could.  
  
"Don't let a single thing leave here!!" said the undead man.  
  
The skeleton then made a giant ice wall with his knowledge of ice magic. The undead man pulled his sword out and formed a grim smile on his face as he closed in towards the isolated crowds of people.  
  
"Heh heh heh! I'm gonna enjoy this!" said the undead man. Moments later, Cyborg's sonic cannon shattered the ice wall.  
  
"What on earth..?!" bellowed out the skeleton. After the dust cleared, Cyborg, Beast Boy and Raven were standing side-by-side. They took a look at the three figures and were appalled.  
  
"Heh. I didn't know Raven had cousins!" said Beast Boy. Cyborg and Raven gave BB an annoyed look and shouted towards the three warriors.  
  
"Who are you?!!" yelled Cyborg and Raven.  
  
The undead man lifted up his blade and yelled out "I am Lord Darkscythe! And I have come to make sure you don't see the light of day!!".  
  
"My name is Venim Iceblade. And you will embrace the cold!" said the skeleton.  
  
"The name's Typhis-Ahn! Face me if you dare!" said the bug-like creature. Cyborg, BB and Raven began to charge toward these three undead warriors. BB engaged against Darkscythe, Raven with Iceblade and Cyborg with Typhis.  
  
Beast Boy proceeds to morph into a tiger and attempts to strike at Darkscythe. Darkscythe blocks each claw strike with his spiked gauntlets.  
  
BB changes into human form and bellows out "OW! Those little arm-guards hurt!!". Lord Darkscythe then grabs BB by the scruff of his uniform and lifts him with one arm.  
  
"Ha-ha-ha-ha! Don't make me laugh!" boasted Darkscythe. At that moment, BB morphs into a snake and strikes Darkscythe's face. Darkscythe screeched in pain and let go of BB. Beast Boy then proceeds to change into a mountain ram and strikes Darkscythe in the chest. Darkscythe then strikes the butt of his blade against BB's head. Beast Boy stumbles around in a dizzy stupor, unaware of what Darkscythe is about to do. Darkscythe then grabs BB by the throat, his glove burning of a death element. BB struggles to break free as Darkscythe's grip burns like acid. BB then morphs into a gorilla and slams Darkscythe with a big punch. BB then holds his neck in pain, leaving himself open for Darkscythe to strike once again.  
  
Darkscythe charged towards Beast Boy and punched BB's stomach hard. BB fell into the fetal position.  
  
"Mm-mm-ha-ha! Is that your best?!" said Darkscythe as he pulled out his sword.  
  
"WHOA! Hello!!" said BB as he gazed at Darkscythe's blade.  
  
Darkscythe swung his blade at Beast Boy. BB dodged the blade each time. "Stand still! ...grrah!!" Darkscythe formed an orb of corruption and threw it at BB. Beast Boy got hit by the orb and flew about 10 feet landing on the sidewalk. As BB got up, he felt much weaker in both strength and endurance.  
  
"Like the effects of my little corruption orb?" said Darkscythe, smugly.  
  
"I'll smack that smile off of your face!!" yelled BB as he morphed into a rhino and charged right at him.  
  
Darkscythe then slammed his sword into the asphalt of the street. A small burst of force sent BB head over heels, causing BB to morph back into human form, in a dizzy stupor. Darkscythe then approached BB and grabbed him by the hair, and lifted BB by the hair.  
  
"OW! OW! OW! LAY OFF THE HAIR, DUDE!!" screamed Beast Boy. Darkscythe chuckled a bit and headbutted BB followed by an uppercut.  
  
BB struggled to get up a bit before saying "Who the heck are you, anyway?!".  
  
Raven and Iceblade exchange a few bouts and then back away from one another.  
  
"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" yelled Raven as she pulls a lamppost out of the cement and swings it toward Iceblade.  
  
Acting quickly, Iceblade shoots a frost blast at the lamppost as it becomes frozen solid; which dispels Raven's hold on it. Venim Iceblade then shoots a trail of ice towards Raven. Raven tries her best to defend it by firing a blast of dark magic. As the two beams collide, Raven puts more power into hers, thus causing Iceblade to struggle a bit. Iceblade then lets loose his grip on the ice trail and raises his right arm up. Suddenly, a giant ice pillar shoots out of the ground, sending Raven into the sky as it collides into her.  
  
"Heh heh heh!" Iceblade was sure of his victory.  
  
Iceblade then forms an icicle the size of an Olympic spear. Iceblade says "Cold death!!" then throws the icicle at Raven like a javelin. Raven sees the icicle and quickly rolls out of the way.  
  
"How nimble. You just might prove to be a worthy challenge." said Iceblade.  
  
Iceblade then forms multiple icicles; 6 floating beside him. Iceblade throws each icicle simultaneously towards Raven. Raven immobilized each icicle and shatters them with her dark magic. Raven then takes control of a nearby truck and throws it with great force at Iceblade. Iceblade attempts to defend it, but gets slammed by it. Iceblade grunted in pain and flew across the street and slams through a store window.  
  
"Grr..! I'll make you pay for that!" said Iceblade. Iceblade then got out of the debris and breathed a trail of frost wind. The wind hit Raven's legs and they froze solid. Raven struggled to break the ice, but Iceblade shattered the ice himself, which caused Raven's legs to become very cold and numb.  
  
Raven struggled greatly to get up as her eyes glowed a bright white "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!!!" yelled Raven as she made the ground beneath Iceblade crumble.  
  
"Auugh! No!!" bellowed Iceblade as he fell into the underground. Raven sighed in relief as she thought the battle was over. Moments later, a pillar of ice raised out of the hole in the ground. Iceblade is at the top of this pillar, with his arms folded and appearing to be unscathed.  
  
"It'll take more than cheap trickery to dispose of me!" Iceblade said as he prepared to leap off of the pillar and engage Raven.  
  
Cyborg is butting heads with Typhis. As he tries to punch Typhis' lower half, Cyborg sees that Typhis' hide is extremely strong.  
  
"You fool! My hide is mightier than steel!!" said Typhis as he struck Cyborg with the back of his right arm. Cyborg yelled in pain as he flew across the street.  
  
"Huh. You're pretty strong for an overgrown beetle!" said Cyborg as he rushed towards Typhis and shoulder rammed him.  
  
Typhis fell head over heels and rolled around the street. Before Typhis could get up, Cyborg leaped on top of him and repeatedly punched his upper- back area. Typhis grunted in pain a little bit before he forced Cyborg off of his back.  
  
"You're good..." Typhis then struck Cyborg's chest with his spiked part of his right arm and used a raising shoulder ram to send Cyborg into the air. "..but I'm better!" Typhis finished his sentence as he backed up to prevent Cyborg from falling on top of him.  
  
Cyborg hit the ground groaning in pain. "You don't intimidate me!" said Cyborg as he leaped back to his feet and readied his sonic cannon.  
  
"Have a taste of THIS!" said Cyborg as he fired his sonic cannon at Typhis. Typhis-Ahn took the full brunt of his attack and flew straight into the side of a building.  
  
"Argh.. not bad, for a halfling" said Typhis as he got back onto his legs.  
  
"What.. did you call me?!" Cyborg became angry and said "I'm gonna make you a wall decoration!".  
  
"Decorate this!" said Typhis as he spit a ball of venom at Cyborg. Cyborg attempted to block it with his left arm. He did, but at a price. The venom began to corrode his arm, and Cyborg's arm began to malfunction.  
  
"Hey! What did you do to me?!" said Cyborg as he was panicking to make the venom stop.  
  
"Hope you know a good mechanic!" said Typhis as he charged right at Cyborg.  
  
Cyborg struggled to get the venom off, but he did not realize Typhis was right at him. Typhis ducked his head, and thrusted his horn at Cyborg. Typhis' horn thrusted right into Cyborg. Typhis laughed a bit, and hurled Cyborg into the air like a ragdoll. Cyborg twisted through the air and fell back down, landing on the ground face-first.  
  
"Hm-hm-hm...gwa-ha-ha-ha!" bellowed Typhis as he stood over his "victory".  
  
In the abandoned prison, the man in the trenchcoat was watching the whole thing.  
  
He smiled and said "Heh. The Teen Titans are an impressive fight. But, not impressive enough!". He then contacted the three undead warriors from a telepathic link he installed in each warrior.  
  
"It's time to end this little skirmish! Don't leave with any spoils. You've already made the Titans feel your presence. Now return to HQ at once!" said the man with the trenchcoat.  
  
At that moment, Lord Darkscythe took Beast Boy out with a big uppercut followed by a straight punch. Venim Iceblade disposed of Raven by freezing her inside of an octagonal ice prison. And Typhis-Ahn threw Cyborg into a lamppost. After their deeds were done, the three ran off.  
  
"Ugh...who were they? They sure put up a good fight" exclaimed Beast Boy. Raven shattered her ice prison with a shockwave of her magic.  
  
"Well, whoever they are...we need to tell Robin and Starfire about them. So that they are well prepared as we will be next time we face them" said Raven.  
  
"Right. Let's just get back to Titans Tower. I need to repair my arm!" yelled Cyborg, who is angry about the whole situation.  
  
Back at Titans Tower, Raven, Beast Boy and Cyborg explained the whole thing.  
  
Robin then said "And these three...people... what were they?"  
  
Beast Boy replied "Well...one of them is a man with extremely gray skin and a huge sword and stupid little spikey arm-guards. The other is a living, talking skeleton that prefers to freeze everything. And the last one is a giant bug that looks like a beetle with a big, deadly horn!" proclaimed Beast Boy.  
  
"And...?" said Robin, waiting for the point.  
  
"Well, they appear to be dead. ...living dead" said Raven. 


	2. Chapter 2

The Living Terror  
  
By Johannes "Damaramu" Cats  
  
Before we begin, the Teen Titans are copyright to DC Comics/Marv Wolfman/Peter David and the Death Knight, Dreadlord, Lich, Crypt Lord, Dark Ranger and Pit Lord are all copyright to Blizzard Entertainment.  
  
Chapter 2: Dracula Incarnate  
  
Four days had passed since the events that took place at downtown. Ever since then, the Teen Titans had been trying to get any information they could out of them.  
  
"What have we got so far?" asked Robin.  
  
"Well...all we have so far is a sample of that venom the overgrown bug shot at Cyborg." said Raven. Robin demanded the sample, and Raven gave it to him. Robin took the sample to his room and began to research the venomous substance.  
  
"Hmm...it has a very corrosive chemical in it...but, I don't see a poison that can be harmful to anybody. If that guy really wanted to hurt Cyborg, why didn't he shoot a poisonous substance?" asked a very curious Robin, mainly to himself. As he continued to research it, Starfire came into his room.  
  
"Robin, you have been in there for a long amount of time. I wish for you to spend time in the living room!" said Starfire, becoming impatient by the second.  
  
"Give me some time, Star. It's not like I am researching Slade." said a slightly annoyed Robin. Starfire stormed off, letting Robin's door close behind her. Robin watched his door for a minute, then continued to look for more information about these three warriors; it could not escape his mind.  
  
Meanwhile, at the prison, the five undead warriors were plotting their next move.  
  
"Darkscythe, Iceblade and Typhis...excellent job with the fight against the Titans. But, our presence is not yet truly felt. Our next move will be a post-attack. Eventually, the Titans will face somebody other than us. I don't care whom it is, but after they are done with him, her or it... one of us will make our move. That somebody is you, Balnazzar" said the man with the trenchcoat.  
  
The winged, vampiric demon got up and said "Very well. I shall not disappoint you!" at that moment, Balnazzar left the prison, and hid in the shadows of the city...waiting for his moment to strike.  
  
Back at Titans Tower, Cyborg was lifting his "REALLY big" weights to prepare for more butt kicking. He then gazed at his left arm and began to remember the fight with Typhis.  
  
"Well, my arm is repaired. But, I can't help but think...what if he shoots that venom at my power cell? Gah! Why should I be worrying? I'll just have to predict him and make him pay for whatever mistake he'll make." said a pumped-up Cyborg. Before he could continue lifting weights, Robin called him to the living room.  
  
"What's happenin'?" asked Cyborg.  
  
"Well, that substance that was shot at your arm was not poisonous. Just an "acid" of sorts." Robin said.  
  
"Huh. Well, I guess he was going easy on me. I can tell ya this, though: I am NOT gonna go easy on him next time we meet!" said Cyborg, who was still angry over the incident. At that moment, the alarms went off in the Tower. Starfire, Beast Boy and Raven entered the room shortly after.  
  
"What's the situation?" asked Raven.  
  
Robin powered on the monitor.  
  
"Looks like Control Freak. Apparently, the couch potato found himself a new remote. Titans, GO!" Robin shouted. The Titans stormed out of the Tower shortly thereafter.  
  
Control Freak was at the local mall wreaking all kinds of havoc he could. Crowds fled the mall in panic, and the local police force had their hands full with Control Freak's beasts.  
  
"This mall is useless to me! Nobody has any Warp Trek movies or Outer Space Wars action figures!" whined Control Freak as he took control of anything near him with his remote; planters, lampposts, benches and even letters of nearby store signs fell victim to his control.  
  
The police forces were trying their best to prevent Control Freak from doing any damage. Flashbangs, pistol fire, and other gadgets were no good. The police forces eventually fled the mall as well after the beasts began to attack them.  
  
"This is no good! Fall back!" yelled the squad commander. After they retreated, the Titans entered the mall and confronted Control Freak.  
  
"We meet again, Titans! And this time, there will be no sequel!" screeched Control Freak. At that moment, he commanded planter beasts to attack the Titans.  
  
Cyborg readied his sonic cannon and fired it towards two of the planter beasts. They shattered instantly. Cyborg then disposed of the other three planter beasts by simply punching them a few times.  
  
"Hey, geek boy! I hope you can do better than this, because I'm not even breakin' a sweat!" Cyborg taunted.  
  
Control Freak retreated towards access to the upper level of the mall. He feigned defeat, but then yelled "Ha! You fools! You fell for it!" at that point, Control freak took control of a nearby escalator. The escalator burst out of it's stair holdings, and slithered like a snake, facing Cyborg. Control Freak ordered the rest of his beasts attack the rest of the Titans.  
  
Robin was blocking the downward strikes of the bench beasts. The bench beasts were very aggressive, and showed no signs of halting their assault. Robin back hand-springed out of the way of the benches, and threw a handful of electric disks. The disks hit the bench beasts and because of their metal armrests and legs, they became electrocuted. Afterwards, the bench beasts fell onto the ground.  
  
Raven took on the lamppost beasts. She threw many small objects, like a package of cards or a block of tile at the lamppost beasts. The beasts took the hits of each of these items, but appeared to not be fazed by each of them. Raven scrambled to think of a plan, and ran to a nearby sales cart and hid behind it. The lamppost beasts began to destroy the sales cart she was hiding behind, and Raven rolled out of the way of their assault. The beasts appeared to be distracted from smashing the cart into pieces. So, Raven took her opportunity and quickly slashed at the beasts with her dark magic. The beasts fell in two, and were taken care of. Raven then ran to help a fellow teammate in need.  
  
Beast Boy was taking on the letters of the nearby "Joe's Steak Shack". The letters all flew at BB in an attempt to tackle him. BB tried to deflect them, but got dog piled by the letters. Beast Boy proceeded to morph into a gorilla and forced all the letters off of him. BB then slammed the ground and caused the ground to rip up, tossing some letters into the air. BB then morphed into a wooly mammoth and gored a few letters with his tusks. All the letters regrouped and formed into the shape of a human. BB rolled his eyes, and morphed into an ankylosaurus. With one great tail swipe, he shattered the human shape of the letters and caused the letters themselves to shatter into pieces. BB morphed back into human form and ran towards any other beasts.  
  
Starfire proceeded to have a dogfight with a few stereo system beasts. The beasts proceeded to launch harmonic resonances at her, which made Star hold her ears in an attempt to make the terrible noise stop. This caused Star to plummet to the ground, and land inside of a fountain. After becoming drenched, Star got up out of the water as her eyes glowed green with anger. She then fired many starbolts at the stereo system beasts; the starbolts had deadly accuracy and disposed of the beasts with each shot. Star flew out of the fountain to help other Titans.  
  
Cyborg took on the escalator beast. He fired his sonic cannon multiple times at the snake-like escalator, but it did not faze it. The escalator beast slammed Cyborg to the ground, and proceeded to wrap around him. Cyborg had trouble breaking free, as the escalator beast made his grip even tighter. Robin ran towards Cyborg and threw a freezing disc at the beast. The beast froze instantly, and Cyborg broke free of the beasts' grip. This caused the beast to shatter.  
  
Control Freak was astonished, and began to find more stuff to control. Thinking quickly, Robin threw a disc at Control Freak. The disc hit Control Freak's hand, and he dropped the remote. Robin threw a grappling hook towards his remote, and snagged it. Robin pulled the remote towards him, and broke it in two. Control Freak screamed out a "Nooo!" as his life and joy: his remote was broken. Robin then grabbed him by the scruff and said  
  
"At least you get out of the house. But, we're taking you in." Robin growled.  
  
"GAH! I'll get you one day, Titans! You'll see!" screamed a desperate Control Freak.  
  
Unbeknownst to the Titans or Control Freak, Balnazzar was in the shadows of the mall watching the whole thing.  
  
"Heh-heh-heh...my time is now..." said Balnazzar. Balnazzar broke the glass leading to the roof, and leaped up onto the roof.  
  
The police threw Control Freak into the paddy wagon and closed it. Afterwards, the squad entered their vehicles. But, the squad commander needed a word with the Titans.  
  
"Good work, Teen Titans. We could not have done it without you." the squad commander said. Robin expressed his condolences, as did the rest of the Titans. But, up on the roof, Balnazzar was about to leap off and make his move. An evil grin formed on his face; he was eager to make his move.  
  
"Titans, how did you know how to take care of Control Freak? I mean...we try our best but we just can't—Agh!!" at that moment, Balnazzar leaped off of the roof of the mall and landed behind the squad commander. Balnazzar bit into the commander's neck quite harshly and began to suck his blood. The Titans watched in horror as they were seeing the squad commander become very thin by the second, as result of his blood being drained. 3 more seconds, Balnazzar removed his mouth and threw the squad commander—who was now drained completely of his lifeblood—onto the pavement.  
  
"But they just can't seem to get the job done." cackled Balnazzar, as he was finishing the commander's sentence. Balnazzar then said "Ah! Tasty...it has been a few days since I quenched my thirst".  
  
Robin and the other Titans were horrified at what they had witnessed. Robin, trying to get a hold of himself yelled "What the hell are you?!" The other Titans were too stunned to even utter a word.  
  
The winged, vampiric demon replied.  
  
"I am called Balnazzar. And what you saw was just a—taste—heh-heh...of what's to come!" At that moment, Balnazzar extended his claws and swiped at the Titans. Robin ducked and punched at his chest. But, Balnazzar's armor is too strong to even be dented. After Robin's failed attempt, Balnazzar used a strong backhand attack to send Robin flying 8 feet before hitting the ground.  
  
Starfire was frightened, and could not concentrate. She fired starbolts, but each one missed.  
  
"I guess target practice hasn't paid off yet?" Balnazzar asked, smirking. Balnazzar then jerked his right hand back and yelled "Carrion Swarm!!" he swiped his hand towards Starfire, and a big flock of carrion bats to swarm around Starfire. As they bats flew around Star, biting and clawing her, she became ever more fearful.  
  
Raven tried throwing lampposts and vehicles at Balnazzar, but he just evaded them by flying into the air. As Raven was trying to find other objects, Balnazzar flew directly down at her and grabbed her by the arm. Once he did, he flew right back into the air. Raven tried desperately to make him let go; swipes of dark magic, punches, kicks, anything she could...but it did not stop him.  
  
"Stop it, wench! It doesn't matter if you make me lose my grip, because one way or the other you are going back to solid GROUND!" Balnazzar yelled, and after he said this, he threw Raven down to the ground with great force. Raven was flying towards the ground so fast, she could not engage flight. After a few seconds, Raven collided into a parked vehicle. Struggling to move out of the now destroyed vehicle, Raven was incapacitated for the moment.  
  
Cyborg rushed at Balnazzar, with a fist extended. Balnazzar saw this raging bull of a man and waved both his arms in the air, as if casting a spell. Shortly thereafter, Cyborg felt extremely drowsy. "Ugh...what's happening...to...me...agh.." Cyborg fell asleep before he could even strike at Balnazzar. "Sweet nightmares" Balnazzar whispered menacingly.  
  
Beast Boy morphed into an elephant and charged directly at Balnazzar. Balnazzar saw BB and leaped onto his back. Balnazzar began to claw at BB's back repeatedly. BB roared in pain and morphed into a gorilla. Balnazzar fell off of BB due to the sudden change and was slightly disoriented. BB swiped at Balnazzar with strong punches, but Balnazzar dodged each attack. Balnazzar then struck BB with the long, curved horns on his head. BB flew slightly into the air before falling back down. Balnazzar approached the downed Beast Boy--who had now reverted to human form--and lifted him by the neck. At that moment, Robin intervened and struck Balnazzar in the side with a flying kick, thus causing Balnazzar to drop Beast Boy.  
  
Robin engaged Balnazzar and gave him a few punches and kicks. Balnazzar took each of these hits, and stumbled around a bit. Balnazzar became increasingly angry as Robin began to continue his assault of punches and kicks. Using a quick palm strike, Balnazzar made Robin stumble back and hold his chest a bit in pain. Taking the opportunity presented to him, Balnazzar's right hand filled with demonic electricity. He then launched his right arm forward as a red bolt of electricity shot at Robin. The bolt hit Robin's chest, and Robin flew back 15 feet before slamming through the entrance doors of the mall. Robin's body pulsed with electricity as he struggled greatly to get up, trying to fight the convulsions caused by the magic.  
  
Starfire disposed of the bats with a starbolt shockwave, and flew up towards Balnazzar.  
  
"You are a vile, demonic being...and I will be the one to stop you!" Star yelled as she powered up a starbolt to it's maximum power.  
  
Balnazzar snorted.  
  
"Rethink your strategy. Because I have a LOT more tricks up my sleeve." He said as he shot his hand forward, a bolt of telekinesis hit Star, and she was halted, floating in the air in suspended animation. Balnazzar's eyes began to glow a crimson red as he formed an evil smile. Starfire grunted a bit in pain, than began to scream in pain as something was being forced out of her with Balnazzar's telekinesis. A moment later, a trail of red mist slowly came out of Star's neck. Balnazzar laughed an evil laugh as he trailed the red mist toward his hand.  
  
Robin saw this in horror. And ignored his injuries, and rushed towards Balnazzar like a madman. Robin leaped up and kicked Balnazzar in the head extremely hard, thus dispelling his hold on Star. The blood of which Balnazzar forced out, was quickly returned to Star. But, Starfire was knocked unconscious because of the extreme pain caused with the blood extraction.  
  
Balnazzar fell down holding the side of his head. After groaning a bit, he got up and said, "It's been fun Titans, but I've got bigger things ahead of me. And if you think this is the final time you'll see me, then think again; for I will be an event in your lives. Now, have some fun with these minions, if you will..." Balnazzar said as he summoned up 5 skeleton warriors, and flew away.  
  
Robin was extremely angry at everything that went down, and shattered the skeletons with a throw of five mini-bombs. He rushed to Star and repeatedly asked if her if she was all right. Star woke up a few moments later, her eyes full of fear and pain.  
  
"Robin? What...what happened here?" Starfire appeared to forget the events of which took place. Robin smiled in relief and said, "Nothing Star, just an error with Control Freak. Now, let's get back to the Tower".  
  
Beast Boy woke Cyborg up, and Raven got off of the destroyed vehicle, still in pain.  
  
"Where's that winged freak?!" Cyborg yelled, well beyond agitation.  
  
"He's gone. Now let's get back to Titans Tower. We had a very...rough day." Robin said, his voice unusually soft and strained. The Titans then went back to the Tower.  
  
Balnazzar arrived at the prison, where the man with the trenchcoat greeted him with a standing ovation.  
  
"Outstanding performance, Balnazzar! But, this is only the beginning. We need to plot our next move. Come, you should rest and regain your strength." Balnazzar and the man with the trenchcoat entered the prison shortly thereafter.  
  
Lord Darkscythe asked the man with the trenchcoat, "What is our next move?" the man with the trenchcoat replied, "We'll attack the Titans head on...all of us. And our name shall be feared!" 


	3. Chapter 3

The Living Terror  
  
By Johannes "Damaramu" Cats  
  
Before we begin, the Teen Titans are copyright to DC Comics/Marv Wolfman/Peter David and the Death Knight, Dreadlord, Lich, Crypt Lord, Dark Ranger and Pit Lord are all copyright to Blizzard Entertainment.  
  
Chapter 3: Full Circle  
  
One week has passed since Balnazzar's attack on the Titans. The Titans got back on with their lives as if nothing happened. But at the prison, the five undead warriors did not get the thought of fighting the Titans out of their minds. As the days passed, the undead warriors plotted their next move.  
  
"We are going to attack the Titans head on. But, isn't there going to be strategy involved?" A confused Iceblade mentioned.  
  
"One must never fight a war without the proper plan. We must teach the Titans the element of the battlefield" said the man with the trenchcoat.  
  
"Do we just grab their attention or something? All we've been doing is just waiting for the moment to strike. And hiding in the shadows is never easy...unless you're Balnazzar" grunted Darkscythe.  
  
"Pity. I guess I'll do it the old fashioned way" the man with the trenchcoat then contacted the Titans right from the prison.  
  
At Titans Tower, Raven was mediating in the living room; hoping for no interruptions.  
  
"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos...Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos...Azarath, Metrion, Zintho—"Raven was startled; suddenly, the communications screen powered on and a shadowy figure was shown with four other shadowy figures behind him.  
  
"Greetings, Titan-- ... Greetings, Raven. Per chance, could you bring the rest of the Titans in here?" spoke the man with the trenchcoat.  
  
Raven contacted all the Titans, and in a heartbeat they all entered the living room.  
  
"Who are you?" questioned Robin.  
  
"There are some who call me The Veteran. And I have come with a request" as The Veteran spoke these words, the darkness of the room he was speaking in faded as the five undead warriors were revealed.  
  
The Titans gasped as they gazed upon the enemies they once faced in the past.  
  
"You guys are a team?!" Cyborg asked, in a loud, concerned tone.  
  
"We are The Living Terror! And we demand all of you face us at the Pier 41 Shipyard! If you do not comply within 2 hours, we will cause mass havoc to the inhabitants of the city. Good day" as The Veteran finished his demand, the communications line closed. And the Titans were debating what they should do.  
  
"Should we just go and face them?" Robin questioned.  
  
"If memory serves, Cyborg, Raven and Beast Boy could not defeat the members of The Living Terror known as Lord Darkscythe, Venim Iceblade and Typhis- Ahn" said a very curious Starfire.  
  
"And all five of us could not take down that flying vampire dude. So, what chance do we have against all four of them including some guy that WE don't know how to predict!" yelled Beast Boy.  
  
"Well, you guys didn't call for help when you fought the trio. And some of us were too scared to even fight Balnazzar. But, if we focus, we can take out this so-called "Living Terror"" boasted Robin.  
  
"What about The Veteran?" Raven questioned.  
  
"He's the only one that seems human out of all those undead beings. Well, we'll find out what to expect once we face them. Titans, GO!" as Robin finished his sentence, the other Teen Titans were very hesitant to leave.  
  
"Look, Robin...I-I don't think we're ready yet" Cyborg mentioned, in a very worried tone.  
  
"We've fought Slade and took him down when all of us were on the brink of destruction. We have overcome impossible odds. And we have all done it without fear. Now, it's either us fighting them or the city becoming destroyed. Titans....GO!" yelled Robin. The Titans were motivated by Robin's words, and followed him out of the Tower.  
  
At the Pier 41 Shipyard, The Living Terror proceeded to wait for their foes.  
  
"It's almost been an hour and a half, Veteran. Even the great Kel'Thuzad would get impatient after one hour" Iceblade complained.  
  
"Have patience, Venim. They'll come soon enough. If you're so bored, freeze that repair crew" The Veteran said, with a slightly annoyed tone.  
  
Venim Iceblade smirked(if a skeleton can actually smile/frown/smirk/any facial expression) and readied an ice blast. Before he could throw it, Cyborg's sonic cannon destroyed the blast.  
  
"Speak of the devil!" Iceblade yelled.  
  
"Living Terror! We have come as you requested! Now you can either go quietly or we can do this the hard way!" gloated Robin.  
  
"I think you know the answer to this, Robin" as The Veteran finished his sentence, the Terror leaped off of the crow's nest and engaged each Titan; Beast Boy with Lord Darkscythe, Raven with Balnazzar, Starfire with Venim Iceblade, Cyborg with Typhis-Ahn and Robin with The Veteran.  
  
Starfire and Iceblade's battle was mostly range. Starbolts and blasts of ice were flying every which way, and beams were colliding, neither fighter getting the advantage. Starfire proceeded to fly into the air to get the advantage of aerial attacks. Starfire fired starbolt after starbolt at Iceblade, not showing signs of stopping.  
  
Iceblade tried his best to counter the barrage of starbolts by freezing most of them, but it was not enough. Some starbolts struck him, thus causing him to flee. Iceblade was being pelted with starbolts, as Starfire would not let up. Iceblade hid behind a stack of crates as he was thinking of a strategy.  
  
"Remember the battlefield!" Iceblade heard The Veteran speak this through the telepathic link in his mind. Iceblade smirked, and came out of hiding.  
  
Starfire threw forth a starbolt beam, but Iceblade countered it with an ice beam. As the two powers collided, Iceblade dispelled his grip on his beam and quickly dodged Starfire's beam. Iceblade then formed an ice pillar beneath himself as he rose to Star's level. Iceblade then made a very large ice bridge that extended from his pillar all the way to Star.  
  
Iceblade charged at Star with both arms extended. Star stood on the ice bridge and prepared to fight Iceblade in hand-to-hand combat.  
  
Iceblade threw forth punches (since he has no legs), and backhand strikes. Star blocked each attack attempt and used a strong upward kick, which nailed Iceblade in the chin. Iceblade stumbled back a bit, and extended both his arms. Two ice formations appeared in Iceblade's hands, and they quickly morphed into two scythes. Iceblade got into a stance, and awaited Star's next move.  
  
Starfire charged forth, and attempted to spin-kick Iceblade. Iceblade ducked out of the way, and slashed at Star's arm with his scythe. The scythe struck Star's right arm and it began to bleed. Before she acts again, her arm became very cold on the inside, and she held it in pain.  
  
Taking his opportunity, Iceblade struck Star with the back-end of one of his scythes. Star got hit, and plummeted into the water. Iceblade shattered his scythes and fired a big blast of ice toward the water. Once the blast hit, the portion of the sea Starfire was in froze solid. Iceblade folded his arms and said "Pitiful". Iceblade then leaped off of his ice bridge to find anyone who needed help.  
  
Balnazzar attempted to strike at Raven with his claws, but Raven blocked each attack attempt with small shields of her magic. Raven then struck at Balnazzar with a slash of dark magic. Balnazzar's armor got pierced and he stumbled back a bit. Raven took control of a nearby ship anchor, and slammed Balnazzar in the face with it. Balnazzar flew back and fell off the pier.  
  
Raven looked into the water to attempt to find Balnazzar. Once Raven looked in a different direction, Balnazzar skyrocketed out of the water. Raven became startled, thus losing her concentration and got struck in the chin with a huge uppercut Balnazzar used. After Raven flipped in the air a bit, she landed on her feet and took control of a nearby giant crate. She lifted the crate and threw it at Balnazzar. Balnazzar struck the crate with his claws, and the crate shattered instantly.  
  
Balnazzar, with his own knowledge of dark magic (different from Raven's), fired forth a blast of dark energy towards Raven. Raven formed a shield, but the blast shattered it, and collided into Raven. Raven flew back and slammed into the side of a ship, before falling face first into the pier. Balnazzar approached Raven with a little bit of caution. As he prepared to lift her, Raven struck Balnazzar in the face with a slash of her dark magic. Balnazzar stumbled back and held his face in pain.  
  
Raven then took control of many large crates, and threw them all at Balnazzar. Each crate hit Balnazzar, since the pain distracted him. As Balnazzar struggled to get up, Raven took control of him with her telekinesis abilities. Before Raven could do anything, Balnazzar dispelled her grip and flew at her. Balnazzar collided into Raven and flew up onto the deck of a ship. Once he landed on the deck, he threw Raven off of his shoulder. Raven rolled on the ground a bit before getting back up and confronting Balnazzar.  
  
Balnazzar pulled his arms back and charged the palms of his hands with demonic electricity. He then threw a very large wave of the electricity at Raven. Raven tried to fly out of its range, but became caught in its wave. Raven hit the ground shortly after becoming electrocuted. Balnazzar approached Raven, this time with no caution. He then grabbed the back of her neck and lifted her slightly. Balnazzar then threw Raven into the ship's sail. Raven collided into the sail, and as result, the sail ripped. Raven hit the deck, and she became tangled in the sail, struggling to find a way out. Balnazzar approached Raven and struck her with a strong punch to her head. Raven flew back a bit before hitting the stairs that lead to the upper deck. After rolling down the stairs, she did not move.  
  
Balnazzar removed the sail that covered Raven. As he gazed at Raven, she appeared to be knocked unconscious. Balnazzar smirked and flew off of the ship.  
  
Typhis and Cyborg exchanged a few bouts, neither getting the advantage. Cyborg struck at Typhis' lower half, but still nothing resulted. Typhis struck Cyborg with the back of his arm, which sent Cyborg tumbling around the pier. Before Cyborg could make another move, Typhis tackled Cyborg and pinned him down. Typhis extended the spikes on his arms and attempted to slash Cyborg with them. Cyborg grabbed each arm before they could hit him. Typhis then used his great strength to weaken Cyborg's grip by pushing his arms downwards. Cyborg then used his only alternative: he kicked Typhis off of him. Typhis then ran to the side of a ship and waiting for Cyborg's next move.  
  
Cyborg then readied his sonic cannon and fired at Typhis. Typhis quickly move out of the way as the sonic cannon hit the side of the ship. The sonic cannon's impact caused a large part of the ship's hull to break off. Typhis grabbed the large part of the ship's hull, and threw it towards Cyborg. Cyborg, scrambling to think of an idea, got slammed by the large piece of the ship's hull and flew across the pier. Cyborg slammed onto the pier, with the large piece of the hull on top of him.  
  
Typhis approached Cyborg. Cyborg still struggled greatly to get the piece of the ship's hull off of him. But, there was not enough time to prevent Typhis' next move. At that moment, Typhis slammed the pier with his claws; thus causing the part of the pier that Cyborg and the hull was on to shatter. Cyborg fell into the water; the piece of the hull making him sink even deeper into the murky depths. "Ha-ha-ha! The battlefield proves to be the true victor here!" gloated Typhis. Typhis then ran to aid any teammates.  
  
Beast Boy proved to give Darkscythe a hard time. Before Darkscythe could attack him with his blade, Beast Boy would morph into a different animal and counter Darkscythe.  
  
Darkscythe sheathed his blade and faced BB in hand-to-hand combat. As Darkscythe tried a dual kick combination, BB morphed into an anaconda and wrapped himself around Darkscythe's body area.  
  
As BB constricted even tighter, Darkscythe's armor began to crack. Having trouble breathing, Darkscythe pulled his arms free and clutched BB's snake body. BB had no choice but to let go, as Darkscythe's grip burned BB's scales like acid. BB reverted to human form and tried to cool off his back by rubbing it repeatedly.  
  
Darkscythe grabbed BB by the neck and threw him across the pier, since BB was too busy cooling himself off. As BB slammed and tumbled across the pier, he crashed into a pile of boxes. Thinking quickly, BB piled the boxes onto himself and waited for Darkscythe to approach.  
  
Darkscythe unsheathed his blade and charged at the pile of the boxes. As he got close, BB morphed into a triceratops and scattered the boxes everywhere. Darkscythe was very surprised at what just happened, and dropped his blade. Darkscythe rushed to get his blade, unaware that the triceratops BB was charging him.  
  
Darkscythe picked his blade up, but by then, BB was too close. BB gored Darkscythe with his horns, and flung him into the air. Darkscythe flipped through the air many time before crashing into the side of a ship. His impact was so great it caused a large dent in the ship's hull. Darkscythe then fell twenty feet before falling face first into the pier. He struggled to get up and managed to get onto one knee. As Darkscythe breathed heavily, BB charged him again.  
  
Darkscythe saw the raging triceratops and as BB got close, he grabbed the two top horns and struggled to halt BB's advance. Darkscythe looked behind him to see the side of a ship. He smirked and threw BB into the side of the ship head first. BB's horns went right through the ship's hull and he became stuck. BB greatly struggled to break free, and was hoping Darkscythe didn't have a trick up his sleeve.  
  
Darkscythe pulled his sword out and it began to burn with a strong death element. BB pulled himself free and turned around. Darkscythe swung his blade around his head and yelled "Death Coil!!!" before slashing his sword downwards. After this action, the death element blazing in Darkscythe's sword formed itself into a flaming skull and launched itself at BB. The coil of death collided into BB, and as a result, he reverted to human form. Shortly after the coil of death his BB, he fell onto his knees, feeling extremely weak.  
  
Darkscythe approached the weakened BB and smashed the hilt of his sword onto the top of BB's head. Afterwards, BB fell onto the ground, unconscious. Darkscythe laughed evilly at the downed BB and fled to other teammates.  
  
The Veteran and Robin did not engage each other yet. Instead, they paced their fighting ground and stared each other down.  
  
"Why are you doing this?" questioned Robin.  
  
"Why would I not? You Titans needed more competition, and that is why myself and my undead allies have come" spoke The Veteran  
  
"You're here for "competition"? But other villains do give us a good fight here and there" said Robin in a hopeful tone.  
  
"But it's not enough to make it the best fight you've ever had. Control Freak, The Hive, Trident, Mumbo, Warp and even the mighty Trigon have not been enough to stop you! Someway, somehow...they all are taken down" said a very serious Veteran.  
  
"You have it wrong. People like Slade give us great amounts of competition!" shouted Robin.  
  
"Silence! I have heard all I need. Now prepare yourself!" as The Veteran finished his sentence, he unsheathed his sword: a five and a half foot beast with a scythe-like curve at the end of it. The sword had a skull medallion at the edge of the hilt. Robin pulled out his extending staff and used a little "bring it" taunt to anger The Veteran.  
  
The Veteran ran towards Robin and slashed his sword at Robin's staff. The sword crashed into the staff and the both warriors started a deadlock. Robin used all his strength to push The Veteran back, but it was to no avail, The Veteran pushed Robin back. As Robin stumbled around a bit, The Veteran quickly grabbed Robin by the scruff of his uniform and lifted him up. Afterwards, The Veteran slightly tossed Robin in the air, and in a spilt second, The Veteran leaped into the air, twisted around, and slashed Robin with his blade. Robin flew threw the air before crashing into a nearby crate. Robin shook his head, and got back up. About 15 feet away was The Veteran, just standing in one place...waiting for Robin's next move.  
  
Robin charged at The Veteran and attempted a punch. The Veteran saw this coming, and dodged the attack. Robin turned around and used a backhand strike. The Veteran quickly dodged this attack as well. Robin was getting angry, and repeatedly tried to punch The Veteran. The Veteran moved away from each punch that Robin threw at him. Robin then tried a leaping, spinning kick, but The Veteran grabbed his leg. Robin tried to break free, but could not. The Veteran looked behind him to see a fishing boat. At that moment, The Veteran swung Robin down like a rag-doll onto the fishing ship below. Robin slammed into the fishing boat and went right through it. The Veteran formed a smug smirk on his face, and waited for Robin to arise from the depths of the water.  
  
As Robin arose from the water...but, The Veteran quickly leaped in after him. Robin gasped, and tried to swim away. But, The Veteran quickly landed on top of Robin and the two submerged into the murky depths. The two warriors were exchanging bouts inside the water. Robin punched The Veteran a few times, thus causing The Veteran to flip away from him. The Veteran then swam towards Robin and kicked him in the side. Afterwards, The Veteran punched Robin in the chest. Despite the pressure of the water, The Veteran was able to fight like he could on the surface. After The Veteran punched Robin in the chest, he punched Robin in the side of his face a few times before using an uppercut that sent Robin flying out of the water. Robin flew out of the water and landed on the edge of the pier shortly thereafter. The water began to bubble quite largely, and The Veteran leaped out of the water. The Veteran landed behind Robin and folded his arms before saying "Come now, Robin. Your abilities should be more than this". After saying this, Robin got back up and awaited The Veteran's next move.  
  
The Veteran then yelled out a "Grrraaah!" as he began to float in the air. Robin saw this and wondered: "Huh? Maybe there's more to this guy then just a sword and fighting ability". The Veteran formed a sphere of dark energy in his hand and threw it at Robin. Robin dodged the orb, but when it hit the pier, a shockwave of the dark energy sent Robin tumbling off of the pier and back into the water. The Veteran laughed a bit, and decided to wait for Robin, rather then engage him again. Robin shot his grappling hook up, and it landed on the crow's nest of a nearby ship. Robin then shot up out of the water. The Veteran quickly sliced the rope of Robin's grappling hook in two, and Robin fell back into the water. Suddenly, a steel chain shot out of one of The Veteran's trenchcoat sleeves. The chain submerged into the water, and wrapped around Robin. The Veteran threw Robin out of the water and onto the pier with the chain. Robin slammed into the pier, and The Veteran's chain quickly went back into his sleeve. "Show me your true strength!" yelled The Veteran.  
  
The Veteran ran towards Robin and tried to punch him. But, Robin dodged his attacks. The Veteran tried a roundhouse kick, but Robin ducked. "That's the spirit!" shouted The Veteran. Robin tried a straight punch, but The Veteran grabbed his arm and headbutted Robin. Robin stumbled back a bit before having his back against the side of a ship. The Veteran rushed towards Robin with his arm extended. Robin quickly dodged, and The Veteran punched the hull of the ship. A loud "bang" was heard, and Robin was amazed at what he just saw: The Veteran's fist was lodged into the ship's hull. After a few seconds, The Veteran pulled his fist out of the ship and flung his hand in a "pain-releasing" manner, the bones in his fingers cracking in the process. The Veteran then said "It's time I end this!" and in the blink of an eye, he appeared at Robin's left side and used a very strong punch to Robin's kidney area. Robin fell to a knee and held his left side in great pain.  
  
Robin, struggling to speak said: "How...a-a-re you s-so...fast?!".  
  
The Veteran, who was shortly joined by the four other undead warriors, turned his back to Robin and said: "Your prattle bores me. If you ever want our terror to stop, become stronger. Because this was below me" as The Veteran finished his sentence, the undead warriors walked away from the shipyard.  
  
Robin struggled to get up, and got up, but walked on a limp to find the other Titans. Cyborg arose from the water shortly after Robin started his search.  
  
Cyborg breathed heavily before saying "They knew...[breath] what to...[breath] do against us!".  
  
Robin walked a bit before seeing a part of the water frozen. Robin, assuming the worst, threw a handful of explosive discs at the ice. After the discs hit, the ice shattered into pieces. Starfire flew out of the water after the ice shattered. She then fell onto the pier, in a near- unconscious state.  
  
Robin and Cyborg ran to Starfire to see if she was okay. Starfire replied: "I...am fine. I am just a little...cold...[shivers]".  
  
Beast Boy carried an unconscious Raven towards the other Titans. "Whatever hit her must have been harder than whatever I got hit with...ow!" Beast Boy held the bump on his head, and set Raven down on the pier.  
  
Robin then said: "Cyborg said that the warriors knew how to use this area as an advantage of their fight. He's right about that. Those "Living Terror" members knew how to use the fighting area to their advantage. I think we need to practice more if we ever fight them again" spoke Robin.  
  
Raven got up slowly and said: "They knew more than just the battlefield. Some of them knew exactly how we fight. And made us pay for any mistake we made."  
  
Starfire, joining the conversation said: "Those dead beings are all very powerful too. I fought the skeleton; Iceblade...and his ice magic is almost too much for anyone to handle. We need to have a plan if we are to fight them again".  
  
Robin then said "Yes. We'll think this all out. Now, let's get back to the Tower. We need to re—ow!...we need to rest" as Robin finished his sentence, the Titans all limped back to the tower.  
  
At the prison, The Veteran was standing near a window. After a second, he yelled and slammed his fist into a nearby table, breaking it in half.  
  
"What is wrong, Veteran?" asked Typhis-Ahn.  
  
"Grr...I seriously expected more out of the Titans. Perhaps they weren't at their best. Bah! It does not matter in the long run. If they keep up their fighting at that feeble amount, we won't have to worry about any interference with our takeover". As The Veteran spoke these words, he walked up to the rooftop of the prison.  
  
The Veteran stared into the city. "Humph...look at it out there. The citizens live their carefree lives because they know the Teen Titans are always there to help them. That will all change with time" spoke The Veteran.  
  
The Veteran then raised his sword into the sky and yelled out: "Hear me, Titans! With time you shall know what we will LET TERROR REIGN!!!" these words echoed throughout the city. And left a cold shiver running down the spines of the Titans. 


End file.
